Thinking about starting...

[ringram]

Hi everyone. Great site you have here.
I've been into fresh water tank (particularly planted tanks) for ~10 years now, but I've never tried salt water fish. I actually worked at a LFS for a few months a while back as a part time thing, where I sold some salt water fish, etc, but that doesn't mean I know much :lol:
I'm thinking about moving my planted tank from my old 20g to my new 90g, which would free up a new 25g that I bought recently (12 x 24 x 20). I have the following equipment from the planted tank that may or may not be useful:

Eheim 2222 canister filter (132gph)
9w turbo twist UV sterilizer
55w x 2 PC lighting (6700k & 5500k)
-------------------------------------

I know that what I use greatly is dependent on what I plan to keep. I'm probably not going to keep much more than a couple small fish and/or shrimp (cleaner, etc), snails...maybe a couple pieces of live rock.
What kind of equipment will I need? Will any of the existing equipment be useful? Will I definately need actinic lighting? Is the filter safe to use, or should I clean it out real good?
I'll probably have more questions, but I'll try to do some reading as well. Thanks for any and all replies!

[Randall_James]

<img src="/images/welcome.gif" width="500" height="62"><br><b><i><big><big>To Reef Central</b></i></big></big>

The lighting is fine for starting out, live rock is the prefered filter system but canisters are used commonly in fish only systems. If you used copper (or other meds for that fact) with any of the filter system, any media or elements need replaced and not cleaned prior to use.

[ringram]

I've never used meds in that tank, but I dose the tank everyday (plants) Nitrates, Phosphates, iron, K2So4, etc...I know that Nitrates are a big no-no with marine fish...they're actually not real desireable with freshwater fish, but plants love 'em.

Would anyone bother getting a protein skimmer on a small tank (25g)? Or, is it not worth it? Keep in mind that I'm not doing a full-blown reef, but probably more of a fish-only with some live rock, just to get the hang of marine tanks.
I also have a full pressurized Co2 set up, which I'm sure won't be needed, but any other things that I'm forgetting -- be sure to chime in if you don't mind!

[Randall_James]

Nitrates in a fish only tank are really no issue... with a tank that small I would just rely on water changes rather than adding a skimmer. Nothing wrong with having one, just a bit on the borderline as far as hassle, cost and effectiveness goes.

[ringram]

Thanks for the reply -- yes, I'll scratch the protein skimmer idea. I do roughly 2 wc's a week on my planted tank anyway, so I'm used to it! The python auto water-changer is well worth it :)
Should I worry about RO water? I just use tap water for my freshwater tanks and there's no issues. The tap water parameters are roughly:
ph ~ 7
Kh/Gh = 4-5
No3 <5
Po4 ~ 0
**Should I be adding anything to buffer it a bit, or will the salt do that? From what I understand, marine aq's need to be in the 82-84F range with a ph around 8.0(or higher).

Sounds like all I really need is some live sand, live rock and salt to get it started w/ the cycle.

[Randall_James]

I would advise an RO/DI unit (at least RO) for any saltwater tank. PH will rise and fall during the day (highest just before lights out) and ideally should be 8.2-8.6 all the time.

Many run from 7.9-8.2 but there is some evidence that the higher levels are more beneficial.

Buffers do not do a very good job IMO and so kalk dosing or some other means to maintain ph is necessary. Without corals, I would just aim at >7.9

[BORNTOFLY]

I ran a 10 gallon for 3 years with Fish, live rock, couple of mushrooms and a clean up crew. I did use a small sump with macro algea to help clean the water. I never went below a PH of 8.2 with twice a month water changes. I just moved all of that in to a 90 gallon and can tell you I like it much better. Evaporation is probably one of the bigger concerns on a smaller tank since it can quickly raise the salinity. If I was you I would look at building a sump and using macro algae to help clean the water. The sump adds aditional volume and gives you a place to locate an auto top off.

Rick

[brettdgreen]

the skimmer is only needed for the corals.

I have a 90 FOWLR and have never used a skimmer on that. Water changes seem to be the best for FOWLR. I also ran a 55G fish only with basic fluorescents. fish don't really have any light requirements. some just make them look nicer.

To save money, you can buy some substrate and just get a cup of live-sand from a buddy and it will seed. I bought the $50 bags of live-sand before i found that out.

[ringram]

Thanks for the replies. I think I'll just "get my feet wet"(no pun intended) and when I have a good grasp on keeping the temp, ph, kh, salinity, etc stable, I may do more with it. It's only a 25g and I know from experience with freshwater(particularly planted tanks, which really are the freshwater 'reef'), larger tanks have a good deal more "wiggle room" and water params don't go out of whack quite so fast. In regards to your suggestion of a sump -- yeah, I actually almost made one for a cichlid tank a while back, but ended up scratching the idea. As a result, I have a Mag1200 and a spare 20g tank. If I ever decide to convert my 90g to marine, I'll consider using this leftover stuff. Thanks again.